Charlie Swan
Charlie Swan is the father of Bella Swan, the ex-husband of Renee Dwyer, the maternal grandfather of Renesmee Cullen, and the father-in-law of Edward Cullen. He is the Chief of Police in Forks, Washington. He is portrayed by Billy Burke in the movie adaptations. Biography Early life Charlie was born and raised in Forks by his parents, Geoffrey and Helen Swan. Geoffrey and Helen were both in their mid-forties when Charlie was born; they had thought they were unable to have children, so Charlie was a huge, but very welcome, surprise. He remained an only child and stayed close to both his parents. Billy Black, Harry Clearwater, and Quil Ateara IV were his close friends since childhood. During his teenage years, Charlie always felt a little bit on the outside of his circle of friends. He attributed that distance to the fact that the others all belonged to the Quileute tribe and he did not. In reality, Billy, Harry and Quil were caught up in the secret world they were forbidden to tell Charlie about. As an adult, Charlie joined the Forks Police Department. He wanted to go to college, but his parents' health began deteriorating at the time and he felt that he needed to stay close to home. His mother was in the early stages of Alzheimer's and his father's mobility was being curtailed by severe arthritis. Charlie did everything he could to help care for them. During Charlie's first summer as a cop, he met Renée Higginbotham. She was driving up the Pacific Highway with a group of her friends, and they stopped to camp at First Beach in La Push. Charlie was visiting Billy when he met Renée on the beach. There was an instant attraction between the two. They spent a few days together before her friends were ready to continue their journey. Renee promised to visit Charlie on the return trip. In her absence, Charlie realized just how much he had fallen for Renée. She returned as promised, and he convinced her to stay when her friends left. Renée was impetuous and romantic by nature, and she loved the passionate whirlwind relationship. Charlie quickly proposed and Renée accepted. They were married at the courthouse in Port Angeles, Washington, just a few weeks later. Charlie bought a small house down the street from his parents' home. For a little while, he and Renée were deliriously happy. Charlie was even happier when he found out Renée was pregnant with their first child a few months later. with an infant Bella.]] Charlie's life took a downturn during Renée's pregnancy. Both his parents' conditions worsened, and his father needed Charlie's help with his mother every day. At the same time, depression began to take a major toll on Renée. She wanted Charlie to leave Forks with her and start over somewhere sunnier, but Charlie couldn't do that. Renée had the baby, and her depression was only compounded by the postpartum hormones. A few months after Bella was born, Renée decided she couldn't live in Forks anymore. She left with Bella, leaving Charlie devastated. Charlie wanted to follow her, but he couldn't leave his parents. He didn't contest the divorce or the child support. All he asked for was time with Bella. He did not stop loving Renée. Four years later, within six months of each other, Geoffrey and Helen Swan died. Charlie was alone, aside from his summer visits with Bella. He devoted himself to his job and worked his way up through the ranks to become chief of police in Forks. He maintained his longtime friendship with Billy Black and Harry Clearwater, and the three friends spent a lot of their free time fishing together. Billy in particular was a great support to Charlie during the difficult years following his divorce and the loss of his parents; they became even closer. Later, when Billy lost his wife, Sarah, to a car accident, Charlie was able to be there for Billy as Billy had been for him. When the Cullens moved to town, Charlie found their quiet presence pleasant, but Billy thought the opposite and tried to warn him. When he found out that some local boys from the Quileute reservation boycotting the hospital, it caused a rift between Billy and Charlie for a few years. He was excited when Bella decided to move back to Forks for the rest of her school years. Furthermore, she will be living with him. Twilight TBA New Moon TBA Eclipse TBA Breaking Dawn TBA Physical appearance Charlie has a mustache and curly brown hair, which is passed down to Renesmee; chocolate brown eyes that both Bella and Renesmee inherited. He stands about 6'0" tall and has an average build. In the movies, he has straight dark brown hair. Like Bella, he has no interest in fashion, and prefers to wear regular jeans and shirts on a daily basis. According to Bella in Breaking Dawn, his scent is more attractive to vampires than certain people, much like when she was human. Personality and traits Charlie is a naturally responsible person and a loner and doesn't enjoy to be in big crowds; these traits were passed on to Bella, who was quite the loner herself before meeting the Cullens. It is also stated that Bella got her clumsiness from Charlie. At times, he could be depicted as being funny by accident. During free time, he mostly spends his time watching baseball or fishing. Bella has said that her relationship with her father is quite odd, but she finds Charlie easier to live with since he respects her privacy when she needs it even though he is protective of her. Charlie has also been described as overbearing at times but loving. It is made obvious in the book, that Charlie has a hard time trying to be involved in Bella's life because he is shyer than her mother. When Bella got in a near-car accident in Twilight/Midnight Sun, Edward senses that Charlie loves and cares for Bella much more than he would like her to know. In Midnight Sun, he seems to show some defense against psychic powers, as Edward finds his thoughts hard to read, and he feels the emotional direction behind his thoughts is opposed to the words. This indicates that Bella had inherited her power from him, but made it much more powerful. His granddaughter Renesmee, however, shows an opposite power, which makes her capable of penetrating a psychic barrier. Relationships Charlie is the father of Bella Swan, the ex-husband of Renée Dwyer, the father-in-law of Edward Cullen and the maternal grandfather of Renesmee Cullen. Bella Swan .]] Bella Swan is Charlie's daughter. He loves her deeply even though they don't speak often. In truth, Bella loves him just as much. When Charlie got a divorce from his wife, Renée, she moved to California, taking Bella with her and leaving him alone and depressed. In the early years following the divorce, Bella would visit him in Forks every summer, until it became apparent that Bella hated Forks. While she was there, they would go fishing, among other things such as eating together at his favorite diner and watching television with him, which Bella also didn't care for. Eventually it became Charlie who went to visit her. At the age of seventeen, in her junior year of high school, Bella moved back to Forks in order to allow her mother to travel with her new husband, Phil Dwyer. Charlie respects her privacy, and they often spend comfortable moments of silence together. After moving in, Bella began to do the cooking around the house, which Charlie seemed to appreciate, even though he doesn't say anything. He is very protective over her, rushing to her school when he heard there was an accident, and even distrusting Edward after the fight they had. He was sad when Bella told him she was leaving, being reminded how Renée had left him. Later, when Edward returns after having left Bella for months, Charlie seems increasingly displeased with their getting back together and for a time feels that Jacob would be a more appropriate choice. However, it seems he does come to realize that not only are Bella's affections for Edward unyielding, he also begins to accept him more in regards to Edward taking Bella's safety as seriously as he himself does. At Bella's wedding, he walks her down the aisle. After Bella has become a vampire, Jacob tells him about the underlying supernatural world and Bella's involvement with it, although without informing him directly that she has become a vampire. Despite the shock caused by the change, he learns to cope with it and ultimately remains a part of her new life. Renée Dwyer .]] Renée Dwyer is Charlie's ex-wife, who divorced him after having Bella, since she realized she had rushed into marriage too early and too young. He begged her to stay, but she refused and left with Bella, who was still a baby at the time. Charlie still cares about Renée and expresses to Bella his contentment in her happiness with Phil, her second husband. Renée remains in touch with Charlie occasionally. After he learned that Bella has become involved with the supernatural and gone through a "change", he agrees to keep Renée in the dark to protect her, and makes her think that Bella has contracted an illness that prohibits her from visiting. He also keeps her in the dark about their grandchild, Renesmee. Sue Clearwater .]] Sue Clearwater is the mother of Leah and Seth Clearwater, and Harry Clearwater's wife. After Bella married Edward and became a vampire, Sue started visiting Charlie to keep him company and help him adjust to the supernatural. She becomes his personal cook, and is always at his house to make dinner for him, mostly due to his lack of cooking skills. It has often been assumed that a romantic relationship exists between the two of them. In The Twilight Saga: The Official Illustrated Guide, it was officially confirmed that they are in fact dating. This is also hinted at in Breaking Dawn - Part 1 at the wedding when Charlie offers Sue a drink but Billy interrupts with a drink order of his own and hits Charlie's foot with his wheelchair. In Breaking Dawn - Part 2, Charlie and Sue are already dating and appear to be heavily in love. Jacob Black .]] Jacob Black is the son of Charlie's best friend, Billy Black. Charlie had always thought of Jacob as a good kid, but after Jacob helped Bella become happier and normal after Edward's departure, Charlie began to like him even more. Charlie also states that he'd prefer Bella being with Jacob rather than Edward, saying that it wouldn't hurt for Edward to have a little competition. But after believing Jacob was injured in a motorcycle accident, he realizes that Edward does care for Bella's safety a bit more than Jacob does. When Jacob disappeared, Charlie set out the force to find him to no avail, even though Billy and Bella didn't bother looking for Jacob. When Bella chose Edward over Jacob, Charlie was a little disappointed but quickly respected her choice. In Breaking Dawn when Jacob reveals to Charlie that he can transform into a giant wolf, Charlie becomes a bit frightened and tense around him. However, they remain on good terms, and Charlie begins to cope, becoming more relaxed and comfortable around him. He also notices the special bond that Jacob shares with his granddaughter, Renesmee. Billy Black .]] Billy Black is Charlie's best friend, and a disabled Quileute elder. They have always been close to each other. Both of them enjoy watching baseball and fishing. Because of this relationship, Billy kindly warned Bella about being involved with the Cullens. Billy drags Charlie to go fishing in Eclipse during the newborn crisis to keep him safe, but he himself is constantly distracted by his worries over his son's safety. However, after he found out about the supernatural in Breaking Dawn, Bella notices that their friendship is not as it used to be, though this change seems more connected to his newfound relationship with Sue. Harry Clearwater .]] Harry Clearwater was Charlie's childhood friend, along with Billy Black, and the deceased husband of Sue. The three of them enjoyed fishing and hunting together. Though they were best friends, Charlie always felt left out of their involvement with each other due to them being members of the Quileute tribe. When Harry died of heart attack, Charlie visited his family daily and helped arrange his funeral. He personally witnessed Harry's death in the [[New Moon (film)|movie of New Moon]]. Beau Swan Beau Swan is Charlie's son in the gender-swapped novel, Life and Death: Twilight Reimagined, where he has a son instead of a daughter. Like Bella, Renée took Beau away at infancy and raised him alone. Despite their lack of communication, Charlie and Beau care for each other deeply, which became apparent when Beau moved back to Forks in his junior year of high school, in order for his mother to travel with Phil, and takes over kitchen duty. Charlie respects his son's privacy, and they often spend comfortable moments of silence together. When Beau unexpectedly became a vampire, he had no choice but to fake his death to keep his family safe. The news devastates both Charlie and Renée. Knowing Charlie has no one to turn to for comfort, Beau asks his best friend Bonnie to take care of him. Bonnie Black Bonnie Black is Charlie's best friend in Life and Death: Twilight Reimagined, and a disabled Quileute elder. Like with Billy, Charlie had always been close to Bonnie for a long time. Both of them enjoy watching baseball and fishing. Because of this relationship, Bonnie kindly warned Beau about being involved with the Cullens. With Charlie reeling from the pain of losing his son, Bonnie is asked by Beau to take care of him in his stead. Appearances *''Twilight'' **''Twilight'' (film) **''Midnight Sun'' **''Life and Death: Twilight Reimagined'' *''New Moon'' **''New Moon'' (film) *''Eclipse'' **''Eclipse'' (film) *''Breaking Dawn'' **''Breaking Dawn - Part 1'' **''Breaking Dawn - Part 2'' Category:Major characters Category:Forks police Category:Twilight Category:New Moon Category:Eclipse Category:Breaking Dawn Category:Life and Death: Twilight Reimagined Category:Characters with special abilities